2012 Pentastar

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racer12306

racer12306

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Hi all

Just picked up a 2012 Town and Country with the new 3.6L Pentastar engine.

Has there been any one oil that seems to be doing well in this engine or is defaulting to Pennzoil Ultra a good plan of action?

I also see there are very few filter options for this engine still so I'll be going with either a WIX or Purolator Classic.

Thanks
 
We had a rental Dodge Caravan last week. Great vehicle. Good to see how much they have improved these vans over the last generations.
 
Originally Posted By: Burt
We had a rental Dodge Caravan last week. Great vehicle. Good to see how much they have improved these vans over the last generations.


They definitely have, even within the current generation. The 3.6 is amazing. Initial fuel economy looks great and power is quite impressive, especially for a van.
 
My parents rented a Chrysler Town & Country a long time ago during a vacation. That car felt like a luxury compared to the Honda Odyssey we used to have. It rode real smooth too.

I have a 2008 Chrysler PT Cruiser. Any oil that meets the specifications in the owner's manual is ok.

In my car, the specification is Chrysler MS-6395. The owner's manual says I may use a synthetic but the regular maintenance intervals still have to be followed.

I use Pennzoil Conventional 5w30.
 
Last edited:
Good luck with the new T&C, PU should be fine. Have you had any issues with the Pentastar tick that is troubling a lot of the Wrangler owners? Lots of info about it on the Jeep boards. It has my interest since I'm in the market for a new Wrangler. Any comments would be appreciated, you can PM me if you feel this is hi-jacking your thread. Thanks
 
Your plan sounds good to me. If you can get the Purolator Classic cartridge at Walmart, you have a one-stop shop for your oil change supplies at a good price. Depending on how often you plan to change the oil, I don't see a thing wrong with using either Pennzoil Yellow Bottle or Pennzoil Platinum. I'm not sure I'd pay the extra 3 dollars for Ultra, as I'm not sure it really offers any benefit. If you are going to do 5,000 mile oil changes, I'd use the conventional. If you are going to follow the computer, and if the computer goes significantly longer than 5,000 miles, I'd probably be more comfortable with the synthetic.
 
Only hassle for me is the 6 quarts it takes means it's a pain to take advantage of most oil change deals that come with 5 quart jugs! Carquest and Napa however do their sales with individual quarts. I'm about to do my first change in the 2012 Grand Caravan soon and bought penzoil platinum. I was going to grab a filter at carquest, but they said that they filter they sell was recalled. So I stopped at Dodge and bought a mopar for $8.50.
 
I have 2011 T&C. Manual specs OCI as 8K miles or 6 mo. I have 4 free oil changes from the dealer. After that I have Valvoline NextGen lined up. It is MS-6395 certified. After that, whatever is FAR and MS-6395 certified (while in warranty).

PS Purelator is running sale on oil filters. Not great, but better than nothing.
 
Napa is running a deal on their Full Synthetic right now. 3.79 a quart. It is Valvoline oil. I bought a case last night to mix with my Valvoline NextGen. You could run Valvoline White Bottle conventional, or go with Synpower is you want Full Synthetic. Purolator and Napa Gold filters are a good choice.
 
Thanks for the info. I haven't heard any ticks. I'll haveto look it up and see I'd there are any indicators. It has about 19500 on it now and is very smooth.

I am a little bummed about the 6qt capacity because of the five qt jugs.

I am planning to go the full 8000 miles as per the manual. And I do believe my Walmart stocks Purolator Classics. I do wish there were more options though. I've only been able to find Fram, Purolator, and Wix. Anyone k.ow of other options?
 
I would just use a purolator classic. I have yet to have problem with them and I get my purolator motorcrafts for $3 a filter can not beat that with a stick.
 
I used Napa Gold for my first OCI. It was <$6. You could always buy Mopar (MO-744). Carquest should have their Wix version as well. Based on cost, the Napa Gold seems the best bang for your buck. I wouldn't touch the Fram filter at it's price.
 
Originally Posted By: kkreit01
I used Napa Gold for my first OCI. It was div>


Just want to point out that whatever one my local carquest carries, I was told that it was recalled, but they didn't know why...
 
I found that discountfleetsupply.com has the Wix 57526 for $3.45/ea and free shipping.

Can't beat that with a stick.
 
Originally Posted By: racer12306
Thanks for the info. I haven't heard any ticks. I'll haveto look it up and see I'd there are any indicators. It has about 19500 on it now and is very smooth.

I am a little bummed about the 6qt capacity because of the five qt jugs.

I am planning to go the full 8000 miles as per the manual. And I do believe my Walmart stocks Purolator Classics. I do wish there were more options though. I've only been able to find Fram, Purolator, and Wix. Anyone k.ow of other options?



If you haven't heard the noise by now you probably won't. If you can get a Purolator or Wix filter for it, go for it!
 
I actually did some reading on that. With as prevalent as it sounded on the Jeeps, I don't think I have anything to worry about. Especially as early as those guys were hearing it.

It also seems to be Wrangler specific for some reason. Doesn't make too much sense to me but a google search Pentastar ticking only returned Jeep hits.
 
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